Syrian refugee and Olympic swimmer Yusra Mardini shares her excitement.
 ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 
 
 
 
 
 

Dear John,

It might have been a year late, but the Tokyo Olympic games have been well worth the wait, and I couldn’t have been prouder to be one of the flag bearers for the IOC Refugee Olympic Team during the opening ceremony.

It’s always been the most exciting part of the whole games for me next to racing and representing refugees around the world. Since competing at Rio 2016 as part of the first ever Refugee Olympic Team it’s made me change the way I think about the word ‘refugee’. I wasn’t carrying my country flag, but I was carrying the Olympic flag, which represents the whole wide world. Imagine such a small team representing 80 million displaced people – this is huge!

Hear more about my Olympic experience, and the journey that led me here, during my conversation with sporting hero Katie Ledecky – one of the greatest swimmers of all time.

 
 
 
 

The Olympics have been an amazing way to show the world what refugees are capable of.

Thank you for believing in us.

Yusra Mardini
UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador and Olympian

 
 
PS. Even though the Olympics have ended, you can still watch or re-watch some of the amazing performances of my teammates.
 
 
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Instagram TikTok

We'd love to hear from you!

We stand ready to answer any question you might have or listen to your feedback
[email protected]